Illegitimate Child – “the illegitimate offspring of unmarried parents”
Do you know what I absolutely despise? The term “illegitimate child.” It is a disgusting phrase that evokes the mindset of medieval England – that is, sex is for power and babies, and if you participate for any other reason, you’re a harlot and your children suffer. Why is it that a child is “illegitimate” because his or her parents were unmarried at the time of conception? As if being unwed somehow makes the child less real, or less of a person. I really can’t stand it, especially when people still use the phrase today. It’s the twenty-first century for God’s sake, and you know what? People have sex. That doesn’t make them bad people, or immoral people. People have children. That doesn’t make the parents or the children worth any less. And you know what? Sometimes people have sex, have children, and skip the marriage, and calling that child illegitimate is a disgusting, archaic thing to say.
There’s my angry blog for the month.